Shivering in the cold, crisp winter air, Zelda turned and took one last look at the gardens. Even now, covered in a thick layer of snow, the academy grounds possessed a beauty that was undeniable. She had always liked the academy, but this time she would be only too glad to leave.

It was with a surge of anger that she thought back to her previous visit to the academy. It had been summer then, the air redolent with the sweet scent of roses and honeysuckle, the cloudless sky a deep azure blue and above all, it had been warm. She had been called to a secret meeting with Admiral Niranda and asked to go undercover, to infiltrate the Dominion.

Unshed tears stung her eyes as she recalled the meeting. It was so unfair! Admiral Niranda had been full of promises, assuring her that when the mission was over she would be reinstated back into Starfleet and given back her rightful place as first officer of the Bounty. She had worked so hard to attain the rank of Commander and just like that, it had been taken from her.

Apparently Admiral Niranda had retired under somewhat dubious circumstances and his successor Admiral Quinn, though empathic to the situation, saw no need to honour the departing admiral's promises. Oh, they'd been happy enough to reinstate her back into Starfleet but on their terms – she could return as an ensign or not at all. She did briefly consider telling them exactly where they could shove their offer, but what was there for her outside Starfleet? A job on a freighter maybe? No, she was 35 years old, it was too late for her to start again elsewhere. So in the end she had swallowed her anger and agreed. It wasn't fair, she thought again.

The cold weather was making her scars ache and unconsciously she rubbed them. The most sad part is that she a Hyrulian princess, the Hyrulian's were a from the same race as Vulcans and Romulans who had also split during the great sundering. Now Zelda the once proud number one of the Bounty was stripped of everything and confined to the academy, a fate she knew felt she would never leave the academy again.

But fate has a strange way of revealing itself, unknown to Zelda but her file had landed on the desk of an Admiral, an Admiral looking for crew members to help her find her friend, Zelda unknowingly just crossed paths with Adirmal Katherine Janeway.